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Texas has purchased $5 million in BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF as the first step in a planned $10 million allocation to Bitcoin reserves, with the state intending to transition to direct self-custody once infrastructure is in place.
The move, confirmed by Texas Blockchain Council president Lee Bratcher, makes Texas one of several U.S. states exploring Bitcoin exposure, though the allocation represents a tiny fraction of the state’s $200+ billion reserves.
Self-custody Bitcoin will define the second phase of Texas’ $10 million allocation. Bratcher emphasized that only half of the state’s commitment has been deployed, and the remaining $5 million will be moved into physically held BTC.
“Texas will self-custody Bitcoin,” Bratcher wrote, underscoring that the ETF position is a short-term placeholder rather than a long-term investment structure.
Pierre Rochard, CEO of The Bitcoin Bond Company, called the move a “historic turning point,” noting that Texas’ strategy highlights how quickly institutional and governmental attitudes toward Bitcoin are evolving.
“What Texas is doing shows a dramatic shift in how governments view Bitcoin as a strategic asset,”Rochard told industry observers, pointing to the rapid normalization of BTC in public balance sheets.
The shift began in June when Governor Gregg Abbott approved legislation allowing the state to allocate a portion of its long-term reserves into BTC. Under this framework, Texas may only hold assets with a market cap above $500 billion—criteria Bitcoin easily meets.
However, BlackRock’s ETF does not qualify under the reserve rule, reinforcing that the ETF buy is temporary until full self-custody Bitcoin operations are active.
Texas is not the first U.S. state to gain exposure via IBIT. Wisconsin’s investment board quietly acquired nearly $100 million in IBIT shares in May 2024, according to public filings.
But the adoption isn’t limited to U.S. states—America’s most powerful academic institutions are also entering the arena.
In one of the year’s most notable institutional disclosures, Harvard University revealed a $443 million IBIT position, accounting for roughly 20% of its U.S. equity exposure. This places Harvard among the largest institutional backers of Bitcoin ETFs.
The university’s 13F filing also revealed significant diversification, including a 99% increase in gold ETF holdings, pushing its exposure to $235 million.
Crypto analysts argue that Harvard’s exposure—paired with the growing self-custody Bitcoin movement—signals a broader institutional shift toward treating BTC as a core macro hedge similar to gold.
International institutions are also expanding their Bitcoin footprint. Al Warda Investments, a branch of the Abu Dhabi Investment Council (ADIC), reported a massive 230% increase in its IBIT position, now holding nearly 8 million shares valued at $517.6 million.
ADIC, part of sovereign wealth giant Mubadala Investment Co., rarely discloses crypto-related public-market positions. Analysts say the scale of its increase is a strong sign of global confidence in Bitcoin as a strategic asset.
The rapid expansion of Bitcoin positions by Texas, Harvard, and Abu Dhabi points to a powerful macro trend: institutional capital is no longer merely experimenting with Bitcoin—it is adopting structured, long-term strategies.
And at the heart of this evolving trend is self-custody Bitcoin, which removes reliance on third parties and reinforces Bitcoin’s foundational principles.
With Texas preparing to directly hold Bitcoin in its own state-run custody systems, the move could inspire further government-level adoption—potentially marking the beginning of a new era where sovereign entities secure Bitcoin the way nations once secured gold.
